


Sparked

by Anestassia



Category: Transformers - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Gen, Original Character(s), Other, sparkling
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-10-14
Updated: 2014-11-01
Packaged: 2018-02-21 05:32:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,711
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2456576
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anestassia/pseuds/Anestassia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU: Ellie was a scientist. A scientist that just happened to work for a 'secret organization' known as Sector 7. But that all changes when a mysterious cube leaves a mechling in her lap and changes her biology in more ways then one. Add on the alien war that seems to follow her around and you have Ellie's new life. Yeah, things are gonna be interesting from now on. (OC x Bot) [Pairing Undecided]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Sparked

**Author's Note:**

> So I really wanted to write a Transformers fic for a while now. This fic will focus more on the bots then the '07 movie, and Wheeljack will be Wheeljack, not Q. I'm also going to change it quite a bit from the movie. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

_Hidden deep within the Hoover Dam was a large cube. The cube thrummed with an unknown energy that countless scientists tried to harness without success. It was on one, dark, quiet, night that the energy began to gather within the cube. The monitors surrounding the cube began to beep erratically, screaming to the empty room that something was changing within the cube._

* * *

Ellie jumped in surprise when the monitor set to record the cube's behavior started beeping. She glanced at the security monitor with confusion. All the cameras in the 'Cube Room' seemed to be broken. With a shrug she stood from her seat and made her way towards the 'Cube Room'. It wasn't unusual for the cameras to go out every so often. It seemed that the radiation from the cube scrambled the delicate inner workings of the security cameras. It's part of the reason most of Sector 7 worked using walky-talkies. Ellie made her way to the 'Cube Room' with a slightly rushed pace. The pit of her stomach twisting and turning for some unknown reason; making her worry.

When she finally made it to the room, Ellie rushed in without hesitation. She was stunned to see the giant alien cube sparking with the unknown energy it seemed to radiate on a daily bases. She watched in stunned awe as the energy arched from one end of the cube to the next like lightening. Ellie was jostled from her shock by a bolt of energy arcing from the cube and hitting the floor only 3 feet away from her current position. With a startled yelp Ellie ran away from the cube as fast as her clumsy feet would take her; the act forcing her further from the door. Her heart racing when she glanced back and saw more tendrils of energy aching from the cube and scorching the floor behind her. She ran towards a nearby computer desk and she practically threw herself under it in an attempt protect herself from the strands of energy that seemed to follow her path.

Ellie sat huddled under the desk for an untold amount of time before the cube finally started calming down. She waited with a bated breath for a few minutes, listening closely for any activity from the cube. Once Ellie was certain that the cube stopped its random attack she slowly and carefully exited her little sanctuary; her body tense and ready to jump back under the desk at the first signs of distress from the cube. With her eyes glued to the cube Ellie slowly walked made her way towards the door; jumping in fear when she'd bump into something. It wasn't until she was half way there that the cube suddenly started acting up again.

The ancient alien artifact sparking with repressed energy for a second before a strand of energy shot out from the cube and right towards her. Ellie turned around and attempted to jump out of the way; instead jumping into a nearby desk. She let out a loud shout of pain as the edge of the desk dug into her stomach and her body bent forwards from the force of her jump. Her hands unintentionally gripping the laptop someone had left on the desk.

Ellie took in a quick, shallow breath of shock when she felt the strand of energy connect with her back; enveloping her and the desk underneath her. Her back arched as pain overwhelmed her senses. The energy shooting right through her back and into her heart. The pain in Ellie's heart seemed to slowly spread throughout the rest of her body. The energy spread for what felt like hours, slowly setting all her nerves on fire until the pain settled into a dull ache. The energy began to retreat back into her heart, leaving her body numb in its wake.

Ellie lay on the desk in a daze, her mind blank as her vision swam. She focused on taking deep breaths as she waited for the pain now centered in her heart again to leave. Once she was sure that she wasn't dead, and that her body wasn't burnt to a crisp, she slowly forced her muscles to work and push her up off the desk. She slid off the desk and collapsed onto the floor, gasping as the jolt sent a blinding flash of pain to travel up her spine and settle in her head. She groaned and slowly settled herself on the floor; curling in on herself and taking deep breaths as she waited for the pain in her head to leave. Before long the pain began to settle into dull thud before disappearing altogether.

Ellie kept herself curled up on the floor, scared that if she moved again she'd have to suffer through another bout of intense pain. It wasn't until she heard the sound of shifting metal that she slowly uncurled herself from her little ball. Her curiosity making her seek out the mysterious sound. She carefully pushed herself off the floor, sighing in relief when she was able to stand without much issue. She slowly surveyed they area, noting that the cube was no longer sparking as it had before. Finally her eyes settled on a little bot sitting on the desk she was collapsed on only moments ago.

The little foot tall robot was sitting on the desk and watching Ellie with large curious green optics. Making the woman momentarily forget her encounter with the cube and focus all her attention on the bot it seemed to leave behind. The little robot had a mask covering most of his face with little antennas settled on the side of his helm. The ends of the antenna lit up a curious purple color as the bot cocked his head to the side. The mechling shuttered his optics a couple of times before he let out an excited trill. Before Ellie had a chance to blink the mechling had jumped from his spot on the desk and rushed towards her in a silver blur.

Ellie let out a yelp as the force of the mechling knocking into caused her to fall onto her butt. She slowly glanced down at the little robot that had his arms wrapped tightly around her stomach. Ellie carefully shifted positions so she could settle her hands on the mechling's back in an attempt to return the hug he was giving her. A smile slowly stretched across her face when she saw the happy orange that flashed on the ends of the little robots antennas. Her heart thrummed with feelings of happiness that made her smile soften. The mechling stopped cuddling into her stomach and glanced up at her with wide, loving, optics and let out a little chirp. Ellie laughed as she moved one hand from the mechling's back to settle on his helm.

"Well hello there lil' guy." Ellie greeted. Her natural southern accent tinting the neutral one she'd forced herself to learn. The mechling antenna flashed brighter for a second as he started snuggling his head into her stomach again.

Ellie's smile widened as she felt an odd sense of belonging overtake her. She could just tell that the mechling was as happy to be with her as she was to be with it. Her fear of the cube died as she looked into the happy green optics. Ellie had a gut feeling that the cube had a plan, and it didn't involve roasting her alive in some random light show. Ellie was brought out of her musings when she heard loud footsteps growing louder by the second. She glanced towards the door that she was running for not an hour ago with wide, fearful eyes. She wasn't sure why, but she was terrified at the thought of others finding her little mechling. Especially others from Sector 7.

Ellie had worked for this 'secret organization' for years now. Having been recruited right out of college for her achievements in her field of study. Ellie was stuck working for people who regarded alien life with distrust. She flinched every time she was asked to examine a sample from N.B.E 01 or the 'Cube', but she couldn't do anything to stop it. She'd tried many times before to no avail. So she worked diligently, making sure her displeasure was known; not that anyone cared. But she knew the horrors they'd do to the mechling in her lap, and she would  _not_  sit by and watch as they tortured the poor bot. She wrapped her arms around the mechling and pushed herself to her feet, turning and running towards the desk she had hidden under earlier.

Ellie slid under the desk only moments before the door to the room slammed open. She felt the mechling in her arms shiver and felt a flash of fear pierce through her heart as multiple feet rushed into the room. She took deep breaths and tried to herself down. It wouldn't do her any good to panic now. Ellie forced happy thoughts through her mind in an attempt to calm her racing heart; letting out a silent sigh as she felt the fear subside slightly. It was still there, but it was manageable now.

Ellie glanced down at the bot and gave him a reassuring smile. The bot looked back up with wide, thoughtful, optics. She frowned in confusion as the bot slowly separated itself from her, seeming reluctant but determined all the same. Ellie's eyes widened in surprise when she saw the bot shift, the metal on his armor moving from one place to another. The bot seemed to fold in on itself in a slow and deliberate fashion until a laptop was sitting on her lap where the bot was only moments before. With a hesitant hand Ellie reached out and picked up the computer. She was relieved to feel a steady and familiar thrum of energy from the laptop. Confirming that the portable computer and the little robot were one in the same.

Ellie's relief was short lived as she heard heavy boots slowly walk towards her hiding place. She took a deep breath, the plan that had formed in her head quickly changing now that she knew she could get out without Sector 7 knowing she had the bot. She hesitated only a moment, gripping the laptop to her chest as she steeled her nerves before quickly jumping out from her hiding spot, a look of fear and shock overtaking her face as she ran to the nearest agent.

"Oh  _thank god_  ya'll are here! I heard a beepin' and I came to check on it when the cube started sparkin'! It was a full on light show! I'm tellin' ya' I'm lucky I was able to jump under that desk in time. I didn' think I was gonna make it. But then the sparkin' settled and I just sat under that there desk waiting for someone to come 'cause I wasn' about to risk leavin' that desk." Ellie rambled, letting her accent shine through in an attempt to show just 'how scared' she was. She continued rambling as the agent she'd ran to quickly led her out of the room, mumbling assuring nonsense to her to try and calm her down.

Soon she was ushered into one of Sector 7's more comfortable interrogations rooms and she sat there with the computer still clutched to her chest. Ellie 'nervously' rocked back and forth in her chair as she tried to keep up the act of 'scared and confused scientist who has no idea what's going on'. She slowly let her 'nervous' rocking subside as she took deep breaths to 'calm herself down'. Once she was 'calm enough' the door to the interrogation room opened and one of the head agents, a Seymour Simmons if she remembered correctly, walked into the room with two cups of coffee in his hands and a recorder held tightly under his arm.

He paused at the door and shifted a bit before kicking the door closed behind him and giving Ellie a small smile. He sat in the seat across from her, setting one of the coffee cups in front of her before grabbing the recorder and setting it on the table. He turned the little recorder on and Ellie watched the green light on the side flashing brightly to indicate it was working. Simmons took a drink of his coffee before leaning forward and giving Ellie another small smile full of pity. Ellie gave him a small 'thankful' smile in return and subconsciously clutched the computer closer to her chest. Simmons quickly glanced at the computer for a moment before looking back up at Ellie. Ellie tensed as she worried that he'd try and take the computer from her. She didn't want to think of what might happen if they tried to take her little mechling; she just knew that she'd never let them take him. He studied her for a moment before giving a little nod, letting Ellie keep the computer without question. Ellie gave him a slightly more genuine smile this time as she relaxed slightly into her chair and waited for Simmons to start questioning her.


	2. Interrogation

* * *

_Ellie gave him a slightly more genuine smile this time as she_ _relaxed_ _slightly into her chair and waited for Simmons to start questioning her._

* * *

"Are you okay Miss..?" Simmons asked, trailing off as he waited for Ellie to fill in her name.

Ellie was honestly shocked by the sincerity she heard in the question. It was obvious to her that Simmons truly cared for his coworkers. It showed in how clearly he cared for her, despite the fact that they had only seen each other in passing once a month at most.

"Doctor, actually. Not that you're wrong on the Miss part." She gave a weak chuckle before continuing. "Doctor Ellie Scott; and I'm fine. At least, I think I'm fine. Might need some vacation time but I'm fairly certain I'm fine." She rambled, partially to play up her 'scared scientist' role and partially because she couldn't help it. It was a bad habit of hers to ramble when she was nervous. It was why she just kept her mouth shut most of the time. Better people think her unsociable then a crazy woman. Simmons gave a small nod of understanding, letting Ellie know that he was not offended or annoyed by her rambling.

"Well Doctor Scott, seems like you've had an eventful night." He joked, obviously trying to ease the tension in the room. Ellie laughed quietly at the statement. He had  _no_  idea just  _how_  eventful her night had truly been. Not that she planned to tell him that. No, she might like the guy, but she didn't trust him. Not yet. He had to earn that right.

"Yeah I suppose you could say that. I'm sure you guys caught it all on tape." She replied, waiting to see if he would take the bait she'd set out. She remembered that the cameras weren't working before she left the night watch office, but they could have turned back on at any point during the little light show she had witnessed. Oh she was confident that they didn't, but she was not about to risk the life of her little mechling because she was overconfident. Simmons did not catch on to her plan and answered her hidden question.

"Not really. Seems like whatever the 'artifact' did caused the cameras to break completely. So I'd appreciate it if you can tell me all you remember." Simmons supplied. Ellie let out an internal sigh of relief while making sure she seemed genuinely surprised and slightly traumatized on the outside.

"I guess. Might not be much of a tale. I was kinda scared stiff fer most of it." Ellie rambled, letting her accent shine through once again. She had forced herself to learn to hide her accent during her early days of college. She was tired of everyone looking at her like she was a dumb hick because of it. Few things made her revert to her old accent. Nerves, fear, and exhaustion for example and she was taking the chance to play up that little tell to make her lie just a bit more believable. Lucky for her, it seemed to be working.

"Don't worry about that Doctor Scott, just tell me what you remember and we can send you on your way." Simmons reassured her with a patient smile on his face. Something Ellie truly appreciated. Despite the fact that she was fairly calm at the moment, she knew she was still slightly rattled by the 'attack'. Something deep within her was saying that the cube was simply doing what it had to. That she had nothing to fear from the cube, and it did help settle her down for the most part. It also helped that as a scientist, she was used to shutting her ramped emotions down so she could calmly asses a situation and figure the best course of action. It was something she did a lot in her line of work, and was relying heavily on now. Nevertheless, the more primal part of her. The fight or flight part of her brain was screaming at her, telling her she should not be calm, she should be freaking out. A giant alien cube just attacked her, leaving her with a little baby alien robot to take care of and she was acting as if it was a common occurrence. Needless to say, his reassuring tone helped calm her still somewhat frayed nerves.

"Okay. I, uh, well I was workin' night watch tonight. And night watch is normally fairly borin'. Nothin' much happens at night, it's just a time us scientist use to catch up on work. Ya know what I mean? Well, the monitor we've got set up ta watch the Cube started beepin'. And I glanced at the security cameras, and they were down. I'm surprised I fergot that. It was fairly important at the time. But I just… I uh, went to check on the Cube, like protocol dictates." She paused and slightly shifted her grip on the computer in her arms, a sheepish smile making its way on her face when she realized something. "I mean, mostly followin' protocol. I kinda ignored the part about informin' someone of your current position. Didn't think it was important at the time. The Cube gives out false alarms all the time, and this aint the first time that it's shorted out the cameras."

Ellie glanced up at Simmons and was relieved to see that he was not about to go into a long drawn out speech of what protocol was and why it was in place. She understood the importance of it, and she was not quite sure if she could stand sitting through a lecture now. Especially one of Simmons famous lectures. She's heard horror stories about some of the lectures he's given.

"Back onto the story though. I walked to the 'Cube Room' and found that the cube was releasin'  _bolts_  of this unknown energy. Kinda like lightenin' and at first I was too shocked to do anythin'. But then this  _bolt_  of lightenin' energy stuff hits the floor not three feet away from me so I just ran fer a place to hide. I was lucky enough to find a desk to jump under 'fore I got zapped. And that's kinda where I stayed until yer men found me. I'm not quite sure when the cube stopped sparkin', but I'm happy it did." She finished her tale with a sigh, slouching in her chair and hugging her laptop closer to her for a brief moment.

Ellie glanced up at Simmons, who seemed to be deep in thought as he went over her tale, and briefly wondered if he would question her laptop. She had not quite worked out how to work the laptop into the story, and hoped that the man would just chalk it up to nerves and leave it be. Luck seemed to be working in her favor as the man simply hummed to himself before nodding and standing up from his seat.

"Thank you for your cooperation Doctor Scott. You can go now. Be sure to rest up and come in early tomorrow so we can do some tests on you to make sure that you're okay. Once the tests are done, we'll see about those 'vacation days' you mentioned earlier." Simmons dismissed her with a smile .Making Ellie smile in return. She liked Simmons. She had no idea  _why_  so many people seemed to hate the man, but he had been nothing but civil towards her. Something she could not say about most of her co-workers. Most seemed to focus on the fact that she was a woman in her twenties working with stuff many of them have spent most of their lives  _hoping_  to even glance at. It did not help that she was being paid a bit more than most of them.

"Thank ya kindly." She mumbled, standing from her chair and following behind the man as he walked towards the door. She gave him a small nod of thanks as he held the door open for her and began the long trek through Hoover Dam towards her truck, laptop still held tightly to her chest. The settle thrum of energy assuring her that the events of the past few hours really did happen, and she really did have a little robot clutched tightly in her arms.

Ellie made it to the truck without issue and set the laptop in the passenger seat while she buckled up. The laptop transformed into the little mechling that had won her heart. She smiled at the little robot that gave a questioning chirp. His antenna shining a curious purple. Ellie's chest grew warm with mixed emotions. The most obvious being relief, excitement, and curiosity. She wasn't quite sure  _how_  but she was sure that the little mechling was feeling the same as she was. She reached over and patted the mechling on the helm. Making sure to pay special attention to his antenna, causing the mechling to shutter his optics and give a content purr. Ellie chuckled and continued her ministrations before turning on her truck and starting the long drive back home.

The drive home was surprisingly peaceful. The little mechling spent most of the drive attempting to sing along with the radio like Ellie, making her laugh at his cute little chirps and whistles he made to the tune of whatever song the station decided to play. Ellie was, for once, extremely happy that she lived not even 20 minutes from the Hoover Dam. Because she wasn't quite sure she could last a longer drive. She pulled into her garage and was immensely thankful that she lived in a rather empty neighborhood with recluse neighbors.

It was only after the garage door closed completely that Ellie risked leaving the safety of her truck. The little bot climbing across the center console to follow her. Ellie smiled and picked the foot tall bot up into her arms. The bot was surprisingly light; though Ellie knew she should have expected it since his laptop, form weighed the same. Ellie leaned forward to grab her bag from the truck when she suddenly remembered that she'd left her bag at work. With a small shrug, she straightened up as the mechling wrapped his arms around Ellie and nuzzled his face into her neck. She settled him on her hip, and pushed the truck door closed with her butt. Ellie smiled and had to fight to keep herself from cooing at the adorable little bot as she carried him into her house.

Her house was a bit big for a single woman to live in on her own, but in Ellie's defense, she bought it with the future in mind. Ellie had always dreamed of falling in love and starting a family, so when she was looking for a house next to her new job at Hoover Dam, she had decided to buy a two-story five-bed 4-bath condo. It did help when she had family visiting. However, that was an extremely rare occurrence as of late.

After a few years of waiting for her soul mate to walk into her life unexpectedly, Ellie accepted that that probably wasn't going to happen. So instead, she renovated her house, turning two of the bedrooms into one big lab for research purposes. It was a nice little sanctuary she used on a daily bases. She really did enjoy her unbelievable large government check.

Deciding that she did not feel comfortable leaving the little robot on his own in one of her guest bedrooms Ellie started the long trek through her house and up the stairs to the master bedroom. Her bedroom, like her house, was much too large for one person to live in on their own. The bedroom had its own bathroom, a walk in closet, and a sitting room. Ellie tended to find herself sleeping in her lab more often than not, so the room was fairly clean. The only exception being the sitting room, which she used for planning experiments when she wasn't in her lab.

Once she was sure that the mechling was settled on her bed, Ellie sat down beside him and started taking of her 'uniform' as she liked to call it. In truth, the only 'uniform' she was forced to wear was a long lab coat with a name-tag clipped onto the front left pocket. The color and design of the lab coat was left up to the scientist to decide. Ellie had decided early on that she'd wear the generic white lab coat to work, and keep her more 'unique' coats at home for personal use. She did not trust her coworkers to leave her more unique coats alone, and she did not want to test how others would react if she walked in one day in the tie-dye lab coat her old science teacher got her for graduation. Underneath her lab coat was a green V-neck with a large green question mark on the front and on the back was the ever famous phrase,  _'Riddle me this'_. A gift from her old college friend who knew she was  _slightly_  obsessed with the batman villains. She also wore an old worn out pair of jeans that were covered with holes, stains, random doodles, and equations she'd written on them when she was bored or out of paper.

She sighed as she leaned forward and untied her boots before kicking them off. Pulling off her socks and throwing them to the floor without care. Her old brown steel toe boots were as worn as her jeans and covered in stains from unknown chemicals and little burn marks from random wires. She'd made it a point to wear the steel toe boots after an accident with a large slab of iron almost left her toeless. She shrugged off her lab coat and tossed it onto a nearby chair. She pulled the bobby pins she used to keep her bangs out of her face out of her hair. She took off her safety goggles from around her neck where she let them hang when she wasn't using them before turning to the mechling sitting next to her. She crossed her legs and leaned back, using her arms to keep her upright as she regarded the bot in front of her.

Ellie had the little robot's full attention and she couldn't help but wonder where he came from. Oh, she had no doubt that the little bot and the laptop she had clutched when she was attacked by the cube were one and the same. She was also positive that the cube had somehow brought the laptop to life when it struck her, making the little mechling in front of her. However, that still left hundreds of questions unanswered. Questions like 'why did the cube act up when it did' or 'how was it able to turn such basic technology into something so advanced' and let's not forget 'why was the cube so intent on hitting her with a bolt of energy'? That was possibly the biggest question she had. All evidence pointed to the fact that the cube was  _aiming_  for Ellie. Moreover, it left Ellie contemplating  _why._  She wasn't important. She was smart, but there were thousands if not millions of people smarter than she was. Heck, five or six or her coworkers were not only smarter, but they were far more experienced then her. So why did this cube choose her? Or did it? Could it all have been one big coincidence? Ellie was not sure what to think at this point.

Ellie was pulled from her thoughts by the little mechling that had been sitting in front of her crawling into her lap and poking her nose. Ellie blinked before pulling a silly face, making the mechling giggle as he poke her nose a second time. Ellie made another silly face before wrapping her arms around the adorable little robot and falling back onto her king sized bed. She giggled along with the little bot as she rolled around on the bed with him a bit before settling down so the bot was laying on top of her. His head resting on her chest just over her heart as he nuzzled closer to her, purring in content. His little antenna, that were flashing a bright orange while they were rolling around, settled into a calm and content blue. Ellie smiled softly as she pet the mechling's antenna, listening as his purring grew in volume.

"Well then little Mech. It looks like yer gonna be livin' with me from now on." She smiled at the loud chirp of agreement the mech in her arms gave. "Were gonna have ta name ya then. We can't just go on callin' ya 'Little Mech'. We're also gonna have ta figure a source of fuel fer ya." Ellie sighed. Her accent becoming tick as the events of the day caught up with her. She was exhausted. "Suppose we can talk 'bout that borin' stuff in the mornin' though." She paused a moment in thought. "Just what am I gonna do with ya little mech." Ellie mumbled, slowly drifting off into sleep. The mechling following her example and fell asleep as it cuddled closer to her chest and the comforting warmth it seemed to radiate.


	3. The Mechling

_..._  
"Just what am I gonna do with ya little mech." Ellie mumbled, slowly drifting off into sleep. The mechling following her example and falling asleep as it cuddled closer to her chest and the comforting warmth it seemed to radiate.  
…

Ellie gave a loud yawn as she awoke from her rather restful nap. She stretched her limbs out, her back arching before giving a little pop. Ellie let out a satisfied sigh as she turned on her side and snuggled into one of the many pillows she had dotted around her bed. She leisurely let her mind reboot from its deep sleep. Ellie jumped out her bed when the previous day's events finally settled in her mind; reminding her of the little mechling that was  _supposed_  to be sleeping in the same bed as her.

Ellie quickly glanced around the room, worry twisting in her gut as she searched frantically for the little mech that had found a place in her heart in the little time they spent together. After quickly searching her room and finding nothing, she rushed towards the door and down the stairs. Following a pull that she could only attribute to maternal instinct. Gripping the railing tightly when she almost tripped down the stairs do to her haste. She made a sharp turn and rushed into the kitchen. Her 'maternal instinct' positive that the little bot was there.

Once she'd pushed the Kitchen door open, she let out a sigh of relief at the sight of her mechling. Said mechling was standing on his tippy toes on a chair he'd moved to sit just under the counter. His hand blindly reaching along the counter as the chair underneath him rocked back and forth in an unsteady motion. Ellie was about to scold the little mechling for worrying her, but the words died in her mouth as time seemed to slow down to a crawl. The chair the little bot was standing on tipped just a bit too far to the side and slid out from under the mech. As he fell the mech's hand skimmed the counter top, unintentionally hitting the kitchen knife Ellie had left out the day before in her rush to get to work after making breakfast. The knife slid off the counter and fell towards the floor with a dangerous glint flashing across the stainless steel surface of the blade.

Ellie reacted on pure instinct as she rushed forward, her arms stretched out to catch the mech before he hit the ground. Once her arms had a strong enough hold on the little robot, she shifted her weight to try and stop her run before she ran straight into the fallen chair. Her feet slid out from under her at the attempt and Ellie ended up falling, landing right on her tail bone. The momentum she still held from initial kick off to catch the mech ended up forcing her to slide on the tile of kitchen floor. In one last attempt to protect the precious little mechling Ellie forced herself to turn as she slid so her back collided with the chair while the mech was cradled safely in her arms. Just seconds after Ellie's back collided with the chair there was a loud  _clang_  as the knife hit the floor only a few inches from Ellie's bare foot.

Ellie clung to the mechling in her arms like a life line as she let her mind catch up with what had happened in the last 5 seconds. The mech seemed to be doing the same because his optics were exceptionally blank for once and the lights on the end of his antenna were dim. After what happened finally registered in the little mech's processor, he let out a shrill scream before bursting into tears. The mech's scream managed to bring Ellie out of her own shock as she adjusted the mech in her arms until his head was settled into the crook of her neck.

Ellie slowly stood from her spot on the ground, wincing as she felt her abused muscles scream at the action. It seems the events of last night combined with the chair she'd just sild into had left some rather nasty bruises if the dull ache she felt in her back meant anything. However, she didn't have time to worry about the state of her back as the little mechling in her arms continued to wail. Ellie ignored the pain she felt as she gently started bouncing the mechling in her arms, murmuring soothing words to him while running her hand up and down his back in soothing circles.

"Shh shh shh. It's okay baby. It's okay. You're okay, everything's okay." Ellie mumbled in an attempt to sooth the startled mechling. She couldn't stand hearing the bot's terrified cries, it made an uncomfortable weight settle in her chest. She silently thanked every deity she knew for the little fact that her closest neighbor was far enough away that she could blow up a shed and he wouldn't notice. Not that she tested her theory… not yet at least. It meant that no matter how loud the mech cried, her neighbors wouldn't complain.

After a few minutes of bouncing the mechling in her arms and muttering soothing words to him he finally started calming down and emitting little sniffling sounds instead of terrified cries. Ellie let out a relieved sigh as she moved to set the little bot on the counter. She looked the bot over, making sure he wasn't hurt. She was surprised to see some sort of 'tear track' trailing down the mechling's face and a quick glance at her shoulder confirmed that her shirt was soaked in the same clear blue liquid. She gently ran her thumbs under the mechling's optics to wipe off the clear fluid as she studied him.

The foot tall, mechling was a little taller then she initially thought. Closer to a foot and a half then a foot but not quite there. Maybe a foot and a quarter. Closer inspection to the 'mask' covering the mechling's face showed a little 'Dell' logo engraved into it. The mechling's armor was a dark grey, fairly close to black, with little neon green lines accenting it in places. If she looked close, enough Ellie could see the different pieces of the laptop that the mech turned into and she couldn't help but wonder how it was all possible. Her scientific mind rushing to come up with as many plausible explanations possible. She was once again pulled from her musings by the mechling sitting in front of her poking her nose.

This time Ellie didn't hesitate to make a silly face, succeeding in making the bot giggle at her. Ellie gave the bot a wide smile before leaning down to set the chair back on its legs and sitting down in it. Once seated Ellie was looking up at the mechling due to the chairs height, or lack thereof. The Mechling giggled as Ellie took his little hands in her own and began inspecting them. Ellie was slightly surprised to see that the little mechling had three fingers and a thumb. She carefully poked and prodded at the little mechling's little fingers, gently bending them and observing how the joints moved.

The mech slowly took his little hands from Ellie and settled them on her face, seeming to take a moment to inspect her as she was inspecting him. He let out a happy trill followed by a number of chirps as if he was having a conversation with someone. Ellie felt a sense of happiness settle in her chest as the mech before her smiled and chirped. His little antenna lighting up a happy yellow and flashing in response to his chirps.

"Well you seem to be havin' a good time." Ellie smiled at the mechling. Her smile turned into a thoughtful frown as she remembered what she mumbled just the night before. "We've got a lot to do today. Especially since I've got to return to work at…" Ellie paused and glanced around the kitchen; looking for the clock she  _knew_  she had hanging on a wall somewhere in the large room.

She gave a little 'ah-ha' of success as her eyes landed on the digital clock she had mounted on the wall just to the left of the fridge. Ellie's eyes widened when she realized what time it was, and quickly pushed herself out her chair as she rushed out of the kitchen. She paused in her rush and quickly rushed back into the room to gently take the mechling off the counter and set him on the floor before rushing back out. In her hurry Ellie accidently stepped on the knife she'd yet to pick up from the little accident earlier and cut her foot. She let out a yelp of pain as she quickly jumped off the knife and hopped around on one leg until she was able to maneuver herself to sit in the chair she abandoned not 3 minutes ago.

She hissed as she inspected the long, shallow cut she managed to give herself in her rush and quickly grabbed a nearby dishrag to stop the bleeding. She glared at the knife that was sitting innocently on the floor covered in a few drops of blood as the little mechling watched her with a mix of worry and amusement shinning in his optics. Ellie glanced over at the mech and gave him a small smile.

"Don't worry lil' guy. I've dealt with  _much_  worse." Ellie attempted to reassure him. It was true, she'd almost cut her arm off once in an accident involving a wind tunnel. Now  _that_  was an interesting experiment. Her words didn't seem to do much to comfort the mechling as he gave a little whine and carefully walked towards her to inspect the wound himself. Ellie smiled at the mech before returning her attention to her wounded foot. Luckily for her, it wasn't a deep cut. Meaning it wouldn't need stitches. The unlucky part was the part where she had to stand up and somehow make her way to the sink so she could get the first aid kit out from under the sink. Well, one of the first aid kits. Ellie owned multiple kits strategically placed around the house so she could treat herself in a case of emergency. Something that happened more often then she'd like to admit.

After a moment of thought Ellie took the dishrag, she was using to try to stop the blood and tied it tightly around her foot, making sure that it was completely covering the cut before she turned and stumbled around her kitchen, using the counter as a small stand as she limped her way towards the sink. Once she made it to the sink Ellie carefully bent down as low as she physically could without actually falling on her face and opened the cabinet. It didn't take her long to find the first aid kit, and once she did, she carefully straightened her back. Being mindful of her balance as she slowly turned and hopped back towards the chair she was using earlier. Once she made it to the chair Ellie set the kit on the counter and propped her injured foot on her knee.

She untied the dishrag and opened the kit, pulling out the small bottle of disinfecting gel she had along with a little cotton pad and a bandage wrap. She cleaned and dressed her wound with ease before putting the left over supplies back in the kit. Ellie had a lot of practice with fixing injuries. So much so that she was a qualified EMT and was working on becoming a full-fledged doctor. It wasn't that Ellie was looking to change her career choice, she loved working as a scientist. She just injured herself enough that she figured it was important for her to learn how to patch herself up.

The mechling had watched Ellie patch herself up with curious optics. Ellie slowly set her foot down on the floor and set the kit in her lap so she could put away the unused supplies. Once she was done closing the kit up the little mechling grabbed the handle and pulled the kit off her lap. Ellie watched with a mixture of amusement and gratitude dancing in her eyes as the mechling dragged the kit behind him until he reached the cabinet under the kitchen sink. He opened the cabinet without issue, and pushed and pulled at the kit while grunting in effort as he tried to put it away. Ellie gave the little mechling a fond smile when he let out a trill of victory after finally getting the first aid kit put away. She giggled at the little wiggle of happiness his antenna made as the bot walked back towards her. Once the bot reached her she pulled him into her lap and pet his antenna.

"Thanks for the help lil' one." Ellie smiled as she snuggled the little mechling. The mech squealed and giggled as he nuzzled his helm into the arms Ellie had wrapped around him. Ellie stopped snuggling the little mech and hugged him to her as she considered what she was going to do now that she had a little mechling to take care of. She couldn't just quit her job at Sector 7. It would draw too much attention to her and she needed the money. Especially if she was going to be taking care of the little mechling from now on.

Thinking of work made Ellie remember why she was so rushed earlier as she glanced back at the clock. She had to hold back a curse as she moved the mechling from her lap and stood up. She paused to pick up the knife from the floor and set it in the sink before rushing out of the kitchen and up the stairs to her bedroom. She was running late, and she didn't want to risk people from Sector 7 coming to her house to check up on her. She grabbed a change of clothes before running into her bathroom. After a quick shower Ellie changed into a 'clean' pair of pants that were covered in doodles and equations and a dark red shirt with a Deadpool logo printed proudly on the front. She tugged on her socks and shoes before quickly opening her closet and grabbing one of the many white lab coats in it. She struggled to get her arms through the sleeves as she stumbled down the stairs.

Ellie paused at the bottom of the stairs and let out an annoyed groan before running back up them and back into her room, quickly grabbing her goggles, name-tag, and bobby-pins before rushing back down the stairs. Pulling the goggles over her head and letting them hang around her neck as she clipped her name-tag onto her coat pocket. Ellie stuffed her bobby-pins into her pocket to put in her hair later as she ran to the door that led to the garage. Ellie's rush to get into her truck and on the road to work was stopped when she felt a gentle tugging on her lab coat.

Ellie looked down and into the bright green optics of the little mechling as he tugged on her lab coat. Once he was satisfied that he had her attention, the mechling let out a chirp before transforming into the military grade laptop she'd essentially stolen from Sector 7. Ellie glanced down at the Dell computer as she contemplated weather or not she should take it with her. She let out a resigned sigh as she picked up the laptop turned mechling turned laptop and held him against her chest. She walked into the garage and hopped into her truck, setting the little mechling down in the passenger seat before grabbing her truck keys from the cup holder she kept them in and starting the truck up.

Ellie absentmindedly open the garage as she thought about the mechling sitting in her passenger seat. She didn't much like the idea of taking him to her work. She knew most of her co-workers would see the little mechling as nothing more than a test subject. An emotionless robot for them to experiment with as they pleased. Ellie knew differently. She knew that the little mechling was sentient. She knew he had feelings. She knew he felt pain. And Ellie was terrified that Sector 7 would find him and take him from her. Subjecting him to experiment after experiment as they tried to find what made him tick.

The little mechling seemed to sense Ellie's distress as he transformed back into bot form and maneuvered so he was sitting in her lap. Ellie glanced down at the mechling and gave a soft smile when she realized he was trying to reassure her that nothing bad would happen. Wordlessly Ellie nodded and turned on the truck. The little mechling moved back into his spot in the passenger seat before transforming back into 'computer mode'. Ellie smiled softly at the mechling as she backed out of her garage and started the semi-short drive to Hoover Dam.


	4. Medical Examination

…  
 _The little mechling moved back into his spot in the passenger seat before transforming back into 'computer mode'. Ellie smiled softly at the mechling as she backed out of her garage and started the semi-short drive to Hoover Dam._  
…

The drive to Ellie's work wasn't long. In fact, as she pulled into the large parking lot reserved for those who worked at Hoover Dam, Ellie couldn't help but feel like it went by far too quickly. She needed more time to think over what she was going to do from now on. She knew she had to keep her job. She didn't have the money to support herself and the mechling if she left. Oh, she had a lot of money saved up, but between paying off her condo, truck, the water and electric bills, and everything else she might need, she knew that that money wouldn't last as long as she needed it to. No, she needed to keep her high paying government job, no matter how much it made her stomach twist with unease. Besides, if she kept her government job, she could try and find out why the cube acted up like it did. She hated experimenting on the large alien artifact and its robotic counterpart NBE – 01, but it was her only hope of better understanding how to take care of the mechling.

With a resigned sigh Ellie turned off her truck and jumped out. She'd stalled going into the building as long as possible by putting up her hair, straightening her clothes, putting on make-up, taking off said make-up. She couldn't stall anymore and she knew it. She reached in and grabbed the dell computer that was sitting innocently in her passenger seat before slamming the door to her truck closed and locking it. She carelessly stuffed her keys in her pocket and walked into Hoover Dam and the secret base for the government group known as Sector 7.

Agent Seymour Simmons was there to greet Ellie at the entrance with a smile. Ellie gave the man a nervous smile in return as he begun leading her towards the medical wing of the base. Ellie walked with her hand gripping the handle built into the computer's frame while she fought the urge to hold the computer against her chest like she did the night before. She couldn't risk drawing attention to the computer she 'stole' from the facility or they'd take it away from her.

"Gotta admit, you came in earlier than I expected Doctor Scott. After what you went through I was fairly certain you'd quit." Simmons stated in an attempt to start up a conversation. Ellie gave a nervous chuckle and brought her free hand up to rub the back of her neck.

"Honestly, I've been through worse. I'm sure my file's filled with all the different accident's I've found myself in and all the near misses I've had. I'm starting to think I'm cursed or something." Ellie cringed slightly at her poor attempt of a joke but relaxed at the easy chuckle Simmons gave.

"You're right, you're file's overflowing with all the 'accidents' you've had. I've gotta say, some of them were pretty impressive. Did you really blow up a shed while trying to boil water?" Simmons asked with clear amusement shinning in his brown eyes. Ellie laughed, a genuine smile stretching across her face at the memory.

"Yup. It's not as bad as it sounds honestly." Ellie stated. She smiled at Simmons look of disbelief and decided it would be best if she told him the story so he'd understand what she meant. "I was eight, and I had to cook dinner for my little sister. My sister  _really_  wanted Mac 'n Cheese and I  _really_ didn't want to wait for the water to boil." She began, only to get cut off.

"Yes, because we all know how difficult it is for someone to wait 5 minutes for a pot of water to boil." Simmons remarked with a snort. Ellie just chuckled and shook her head. Slightly surprised that the man was acting so casually around her at the moment. Simmons was well known for his 'professional' attitude and how seriously he took his job.

"I was eight, 5 minutes felt like a life time." Ellie said by way of explanation. Simmons looked as if he was about to give another sarcastic remark before a thoughtful look overtook his face and he nodded, accepting Ellie's excuse.

"As I was saying, I  _really_ didn't want to wait for the water to boil. So I went out to the shed and decided to try and see if I could make something that would 'accelerate the process' using the scraps my dad kept there. Things went bad fairly quickly and I was forced to run from the shed as the water caught fire after I used my 'prototype' on it." Ellie paused at the look of utter disbelief Simmons gave her and shrugged her shoulders in response. "Honestly, it's not the  _worst_ response to testing an invention I've had. Just… unusual. Mind you, it's not as bad as the time I managed to set my cereal on fire. I'm  _still_  not sure how  _that_  happened." Ellie could tell by the look on his face that Simmons  _really_  wanted to know the story behind her rambled statement, but she studiously ignored it and continued on with her original tale.

"It wasn't until I was at the phone and calling the fire department that I realized I forgot to turn my little invention off. It ended up overheating from overuse and then it exploded, taking the barn with it." Ellie finished her tale with a chuckle as she remembered her little eight year old self explaining to her parents why the fire department had called them and why they now needed a new shed. Surprisingly enough, her dad just laughed and patted her on the head while her mom walked away grumbling something about 'stupid scientist that couldn't boil water without it blowing up in their faces' and 'it's all her father's fault I knew we should've thrown those scraps but  _nooo_ '. Simmons gave a hearty laugh as he stopped in front of a door labeled 'Infirmary'. It was a door Ellie was quite familiar with due to her accident prone tendencies.

"You're right, that's not as  _nearly_  as bad as it sounds." Simmons joked with a role of his eyes as he opened the door to the infirmary, and gesturing for Ellie to walk in before him. Ellie smiled and nodded her head in thanks before walking into the rather large room.

The infirmary was a well sized room with four gurneys set up around the room with trollies and trays set up around them to act as a mobile examination stations of sorts. There were three doors in the room. The one on the right was the restroom, the one furthest from the door to the hallway and on the left wall was the supply closet, and the last door that was situated on the left wall close to the door that led to the hall was the office for the head doctor.

The head doctor in this case was a middle aged man by the name of Arthur Freeman. "No connection to Martian Freeman and Morgan Freeman, it is just my name." Arthur would say whenever he got a new patient. They always seemed to ask that question of the doctor, eager to have some small connection with the well-known actors. Arthur was a fairly straight forward man who kept to himself most of the time and worked extremely well under pressure. Half the base joked that he was an alien and most had taken to calling him Mr. Spock. It didn't help that in response to this Arthur would just quirk his eyebrow in a way that resembled said fictional alien and say "I am a doctor. You should address me as such." In response Ellie had started calling him "Doc Spock".

At the sound of the infirmary door opening, Arthur walked from his office and turned to get some hand sanitizer from the dispenser he had installed beside his office door. The dispenser gave a little weir as Doctor Freeman moved his hand under it and quickly began rubbing the sanitizer into his hands as he turned to greet his new patient.

"Ah, Doctor Scott. It is nice to see you again. What is it this time? Have you burned yourself with a welder again? More chemical burns? Or something more unbelievable like getting your foot stuck to your shoe with an experimental glue or swallowing a miniature industrial strength magnet?" Doctor Freeman asked. Simmons turned to Ellie with a raised eyebrow at the doctor's question and cleared his throat, alerting Arthur to his presence. "Oh, Mr. Simmons, you are here as well." Arthur paused a moment before letting out a quite huff of annoyance. One of the few emotions he seemed to show. He showed this emotion quite often after getting to know Ellie. "Please tell me she didn't-."

"Nope!" Ellie quickly cut Arthur off, glancing nervously at Simmons who seemed intrigued. Simmons opened his mouth, about to as the doctor what it was he was going to say when Ellie quickly cut him off. "Just a check-up. Had a little issue last night with 'the artifact' and I need you to make sure I'm not gonna die of radiation or anything like that." She quickly explained, walking into the infirmary and lightly jumping onto the gurney she'd dubbed as 'hers' after her third time in the infirmary. Doctor Freeman just quirked an eyebrow at Ellie's explanation and turned to Simmons.

"Will you be staying here for the examination agent? Or are you okay with simply reading my report about it later?" The doctor asked. Simmons seemed to pause in thought at the doctor's question a moment before shaking his head.

"I won't be staying Doctor Freeman, don't worry." Simmons then turned to Ellie and gave her a friendly smile. "Feel free to come to me if you need anything Doctor Scott." Simmons waited for Ellie to nod in conformation that she'd seek him out should she need to before leaving. Ellie watched as the door to the infirmary slowly closed and swallowed when she heard the solid click of the latch sliding into place. She then turned to Doctor Freeman, who was busying himself with putting on a clean pair of gloves.

"So, Doc Spock, How's it been goin'?" Ellie asked in a poor attempt of starting a conversation. She'd be lying if she said she wasn't nervous. She had no idea  _what_ the cube did to her the night before, and she was terrified that whatever it was might have given her an early grave. She wasn't quite sure if she should be worrying about alien tumors or something else entirely, but she knew something changed. She felt it change. She felt it in the searing pain that seemed to reach every nerve and every cell. She felt it in dull pounding pain she'd felt in her head and the ache she could still feel in her muscles. Something changed, and she was scared to find out just  _what_  it was. Doctor Freeman seemed to sense Ellie's worry and gave her one of his rare smiles in an attempt to comfort her.

"Everything has been fine Ellie. We have a new nurse coming in this week. I am sure you two will get along swimmingly considering how often you will see each other." The doctor joked, easing the tension easily. Ellie gave a thankful smile and gave a little nod at Doctor Freeman's words. Doctor Freeman was a fairly straightforward man that rarely joked when he was on the clock, and Ellie was one of the very few who'd ever seen him joke.

Doctor Freeman was surprisingly good at easing his patient's nerves if he needed to. He just rarely bothered. Most of his patients all too busy trying to get back to their jobs to need his comfort, let alone pay attention to it. Sector 7 worked like a well-oiled machine, and that meant very few had the time or patients for dealing with the company doctor, so he didn't have the time to deal with them. Ellie thought it was their loss, since Doctor Freeman was a rather interesting man. She liked him. He was one of the very few that had earned her trust.

Doctor Freeman trusted Ellie as well. Which was something he rarely did, but from Doctor Freeman's perspective, Ellie had earned it. Ellie was in the infirmary at least twice a week. A bright smile on her face no matter the ailment. At first he figured her a klutz and a slight idiot if some of the injuries she came to him for had any indication. That opinion quickly changed when, in passing, he'd learned that she was one of their top scientists and was quickly working her way up to being the most valued asset of the science division. He was honestly surprised that she seemed to be eager to get to know the doctor. Something so few took the time to do. He expected the top scientist to ignore him and instead focus on working their way up in the world. Talking about hyperspace transport and whatnot. Instead he was met with said scientist chatting with him about simple, mundane topics like the weather and the new coffee machine in the brake room.

Freeman was, understandably, thrown off by this at first. He wasn't quite used to someone talking to him as earnestly as Ellie did. Smiling away as she explained how she'd burned herself or what chemicals were currently eating their way through her boots and staining her skin. Ellie had managed to surprise Arthur for a second time when he found out Ellie that was a rather quiet individual around others in her division. She seemed to avoid most of the other scientists and only ever exchanged polite pleasantries with them. It wasn't until a year into dealing with her that he managed to ask her  _why_  she was so eager to get to know him, yet avoid her co-workers. Ellie just shrugged and said something along the lines of 'Most of my co-workers are over-confident and self-obsessed geniuses that have no time for the world around them. So I don't have time for them." That was the first time Ellie had managed to make Doctor Freeman laugh. He'd come to the same conclusion years ago, and was honestly surprised to hear Ellie speak of her fellow scientists as she did. Thus their friendship began.

Doctor Freeman taught Ellie how to care for herself should she find herself injured and unable to reach himself or another doctor in a timely manner, and Ellie helped Doctor Freeman around the infirmary in turn. Cleaning what he asked and taking care of the simple injuries that came into the infirmary during her brake. They'd eat lunch together and often spend time discussing what was recently found in the alien artifact and what it might mean for future technology and such. It was because of this friendship that Doctor Freeman let Ellie call him 'Doc Spock' at times and why Ellie would let Doctor Freeman grumble and complain to her about the attitude of the people who worked at Sector 7.

It was also because of this friendship that Doctor Freeman frowned as he studied the results from the tests he ran on Ellie. He wasn't quite sure  _what_  the results meant for the accident prone scientist at the moment, and he was worried about what he might find out. Freeman gave an annoyed sigh as he ran his long fingers through his rather long chestnut hair. Exposing the grey that seemed to be growing at his temples and probably making it even greyer with his stress. He ran his hands down his face before focusing back on the computer he was studying intently. Doctor Freeman wasn't quite sure what to make of his findings, but one thing was for certain. He couldn't let the rest at Sector 7 find out quite yet. He knew the protocol, and he wouldn't, couldn't put Ellie through that.

It was with that thought in mind that Doctor Freeman opened up a blank document and began typing out his report. Stating quite plainly that nothing was wrong with Ellie, and she was clear to work as long as she came in for periodic check-ups throughout the following month. As he wrote Doctor Freeman silently prayed that his words would prove true and Ellie would be fine in the end, but something in his gut told him that things were going to be changing quite dramatically for his friend. He could only hope it would be for the better.


	5. A New Project

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

… __  
As he wrote Doctor Freeman silently prayed that his words would prove true and Ellie would be fine in the end, but something in his gut told him that things were going to be changing quite dramatically for his friend. He could only hope it would be for the better.  
…

Ellie left the infirmary and went straight towards her office/workstation. She tightened her grip on the handle built into the computer turned mech turned computer as she let out a relieved sigh. Doctor Freeman had told her that everything seemed fine, and that he'd get back to her once he ran some more tests on the samples he'd taken from her. She was relieved to say the least to hear the doctor tell her that. She was convinced that something major had happened when she'd been hit with that odd energy from the cube. Doctor Freeman's words worked wonders to calm her nerves. She knew he'd tell her if something major had happened and he seemed to think everything was fine.

Ellie arrived at the science wing with a smile and swiped her ID card over the little scanner they had stationed there. The door in front of her unlocked with a loud click and Ellie walked into the science wing with a skip in her step. She ignored the odd looks and whispers most of her fellow scientists gave her as she walked to her personal office/workstation.

Each scientist was given their own workstation that consisted of a table, a sink, a trolley full of supplies, some equipment, and things like that. The higher your status amongst the scientists, the better your workstation. Sector 7 used it as a ploy to get there employee's to work harder. It worked, for the most part. Ellie was one of the few who were given a work station in a room separate from the other scientists with a connected office. She had her own team of scientists and interns at her disposal should she need them, and was given access to any equipment she might need.

Because of this, many of the other scientists avoided Ellie. Most of them thought Ellie was getting unfair treatment, and the figured she was 'sleeping her way to the top'. Some figured she was given her position because of her father, who was a notable scientist many had grown to respect. Very few chose to accept that Ellie might just be that good at her job and earned her position.

Ellie walked straight into her connected office and set the mechling turned computer into the chair positioned behind her desk before turning to her desk. Her desk was a large black modern looking thing overrun with papers and little bits of random junk from failed or abandoned inventions. Ellie sighed as she set about cleaning off her desk so she could set the laptop on it. She hummed a random tune to herself as she worked on clearing her desk, oblivious to the whispers of the other scientists as they glanced at her workstation. It wasn't until one of her interns walked into her office with a stack of files in his hand that Ellie finally paused in her work.

"You know, if you wanted your desk clean you could have asked one of us to do it. It is what we're here for." The intern, a short blond man by the name of Evan who actually seemed to enjoy working under Ellie. Ellie set down the papers she was holding and turned to Evan with a smirk.

"That's not my style Ev and you know it." Ellie commented. She glanced at the files in Evans arms and cocked an eyebrow. "What are those for? Am I getting another project?" She asked with a smile. She was eager to see what job Sector 7 might have in store for her. Evan nodded his head as he walked forward to set the files on a clean portion of Ellie's desk. Ellie gave a slightly annoyed huff at the fact that her newly cleaned desk was going to get overrun with papers again as she grabbed one of the files and began reading it over. As she read it her eager smile turned into a small frown.

"What's up El, another request for your opinion on something?" Evan asked when he noticed the look on his bosses face. Ellie, due to her position, was often asked to give her opinion on things and watch over projects. Ellie, much to Evan's amusement, found this job annoying and worked hard to avoid it. Ellie gave a frustrated groan and shook her head, throwing the file down on her desk before she stuffed her hands into the pockets of her lab coat.

"No Evan, it's nothing that simple. They want me to start a new project looking into the subjects made from the energy harnessed from the cube." Ellie ground out with a hard look in her eye. Evan cringed at the tone of Ellie's voice and the fact that she said his name rather than the nickname she'd given him. Evan had only ever heard Ellie talk like this three times before, and each was a time he'd prefer to forget. Ellie only ever spoke like that when she was angry and determined, and that always meant extra work for him and him having to put up with listening to the new rumors that were sure to pop up around the base.

"You mean those little killer death machines made using the energy forced out of the artifact?" Evan asked, shuddering at memory of the day they first tested the 'radiation gun' as he'd dubbed it. The  _thing_  made from the radiation went on a rampage, killing a large number of the scientists who were working on the project. Last he heard Sector 7 was planning on scrapping the project. Saying the  _things_  made from the cube radiation were far too volatile and unpredictable for use.

Ellie let out a sigh and began messaging her temples. She was starting to get a headache, and she could just tell it was going to be  _painful._  "Yes Evan. I've been asked to see what makes those things tick, and to run tests to see if we can train them. Problem is, I hate even making them, let alone killing or experimenting on them." Ellie glanced down at the laptop sitting innocently in her plush chair and had to hold back a cringe at the thought of experimenting on anything like her little mechling.

She was devastated when she learned of the destruction of the team that was working on harnessing the Cube's energy. It was a grim reminder to her that their work was with the unknown, and anything could happen. That was proven yet again to her when the cube 'attacked' her and left her with the mechling. She never got to see the little bot made from the harnessed cube energy, and she had no real idea what she should expect. With another sigh Ellie picked up the laptop and collapsed into her chair, setting the little computer on her lap as she grabbed the folder and started reading over it again. Evan gave his boss a sympathetic smile.

He knew how much she hated working on anything related to the cube or its counterpart NBE – 01. He knew she felt like what she was doing was no different from dissecting a human without their consent and trying to see what made them tick. Evan didn't really understand  _why_  she saw these clearly mechanical beings as something sentient, but he could never work up the nerve to question it. Evan could only chalk it up to another quirk of Doctor Eleanor Scott and leave it at that.

"Well, I'll leave you to your work El. I'll be in the brake room if you need anything." Evan announced, giving Ellie one last smile before leaving the room. Ellie waved him off with a slightly forced smile and watched as he left. Ellie waited a few minutes after Evan left before dropping the file once again and hugging the laptop to her chest.

She already felt uncomfortable working on NBE – 01 and the cube, and now she had to experiment on little bots that could be the brothers and sisters of her little mechling. With a heavy sigh Ellie leaned back in her chair and studied the roof of her office. Trying to think through her next plan of action. Ellie was so lost in thought, she didn't notice the door to her office open. Nor did she notice the man walking up to her desk with an amused look on his face.

"You know Doctor Scott, when I checked your file and found out you were one of our top scientists, I thought I'd come in and find you working on something pertaining to, well, science." The gruff voice of Agent Seymour Simmons rung in Ellie's ears, pulling her from her thoughts and bringing a small smile on her face. Ellie tore her eyes from the roof she was studying so intently and gave Simmons a wide smile.

"Agent Simmons! I'll have you know I was studying the very important science of procrastination. So, to what honor do I owe this surprise visit?" Ellie asked, relaxing her hold on the laptop in her arms and settling it in her lap once more. Simmons returned Ellie's smile before glancing pointedly at the file on her desk.

"I see you've got a new project. Care to share?" Simmons asked with a knowing glint in his eyes, ignoring Ellie's question in hopes of her coming to the answer on her own. Ellie glanced down at the file she was reading earlier before studying Simmons. He looked exceptionally smug at the moment.

"Yup. I've been asked to research and experiment on the subjects made from the energy we can harness from the cube." Ellie paused and studied Simmons closely for a moment before asking the question that she was fairly certain she already knew the answer to. "Did you have something to do with this?"

Simmons smug smile turned into a smirk as he lightly shrugged his shoulders. "I  _might_  have put in a good word about you to Banacheck. I'm fairly certain he was going to give the job to you anyway. From what I hear you're the best researcher we've got when it comes to the artifact and NBE – 01." Simmons mentioned as he grabbed one of the seats set against the wall of Ellie's office and moved it so he could sit in front of her desk. Ellie watched Simmons and took deep breaths, doing her best to control her breathing. Simmons was right, they were probably going to give the project to her anyway. It'd do her no good to get mad at Simmons and ruin their budding friendship. She needed to control her anger.

Simmons sat in his seat and watched Ellie with raised eyebrows. Ellie took in a deep breath and let it out as a long sigh. She met Simmons slightly less smug questioning stare with a look that was nothing but professional. This seemed to wipe the last traces of the smug look from Simmons face as he gave Ellie a searching look. "Thank you for the consideration agent Simmons. I'd really love to stay and chat, but I really must go and get started on my new project. It was a pleasure to see you again." Ellie's voice was cold as ice. She grabbed the handle built into the laptop before standing and reaching forward and gathered the files for her new project before walking out of her office. She paused at the door, holding it open and gesturing for Simmons to exit before her.

Simmons watched Ellie with a stunned and slightly fearful look on his face. Simmons had honestly expected Ellie to be ecstatic over the new project. He'd heard all the other scientists of her division discussing it in the brake room. From what he could tell, it was the project everyone wanted. Simmons stood from his seat and silently walked out of the office. He turned to Ellie and opened his mouth, only to have Ellie walk past him and to the door that led out of her workroom.

With a sigh Simmons walked out of the room and watched as Ellie locked the door behind her, turning the handle to make sure it was properly locked before turning back to Simmons. Simmons opened his mouth, ready to ask Ellie what was wrong when Ellie raised her hand, cutting him off mid-sentence. Ellie just let out a disappointed sigh before walking away. Leaving Simmons standing at the door to her workroom with his mouth hanging open and a stunned look on his face.

Evan walked up to Simmons, munching on a powdered doughnut. He gave Simmons a pitying smile, having seen Ellie's dramatic exit and guessing that Simmons had done something to piss the girl off. Evan patted Simmons lightly on the shoulder, shaking the man out of his shock and drawing his attention to the fact that most of the scientist on the floor were staring at him. Simmons growled and gave all of the scientists a harsh glare before turning his glare to Evan.

Evan simply gave Simmons glare a toothy grin. "Looks like you pissed Els off. How'd you do that? It takes a lot to get on her nerves." Evan asked, ignoring the clear look of anger on the other man's face. Simmons glared a moment longer before letting out a resigned sigh.

"Honestly. I don't know. I only came in to ask her how she might like her new project and I might have dropped a few hints that I had something to do with her getting the project. Next thing I know she's closed off and rushing me outta her office." Simmons said with a shrug of his shoulders. Running one hand through his curly brown hair.

Evan let out a small 'oh' before giving a heavy sigh and patting Simmons on the shoulder again. "Well then buddy, you're lucky that's all she did. You see, Ellie  _hates_  working on the alien artifact, NBE – 01, and anything else to do with them really." Evan supplied, smirking at the utterly confused look on Simmons face.

"If she hates the NBE and anything relating to it, why is she working here?" Simmons asked in a disbelieving tone. Evan just shrugged, taking a bite of his doughnut and gesturing for Simmons to follow him before answering.

"She doesn't 'hate the NBE and anything to do with them'. She hates  _experimenting_  on them. Something happened to her when she first started working here, giving her the impression that the NBE and the artifact were sentient. She hates the fact that she has to experiment on something she sees as sentient being without said sentient beings approval." Evan explained. Simmons considered Evan's explanation for a moment. It still didn't make sense to him why she was working for Sector 7 if she couldn't stand working on the alien artifacts. Evan gave Simmons a knowing look as he led the man through the halls of the base.

"Look, Ellie isn't crazy or anything. At least, not the kind of crazy you're thinking of. She's not forcing herself to work here and she has plenty of other job opportunities just throwing themselves at her. She  _chose_  to keep working here because, despite her misgivings about experimenting on the alien artifacts, she knows this is where she belongs." Evan explained in a matter of fact way. Evan rolled his eyes at Simmons questioning look and continued his explanation after taking another bite of his doughnut. Internally asking himself  _why_  he was bothering to tell Simmons any of this anyway.

"With every little thing she learns about the alien artifacts, Ellie feels as if she can understand them better and in turn, better protect them. Besides, she's the one who worked so hard to put many of the rules regarding experimentation of the alien artifacts in place. She didn't quit because she knew that quitting wouldn't solve the problem. Ellie stays because she knows she can do more good for humanity and the alien artifacts while she's here then she could if she just ran away from the problem." Evan spoke earnestly as he led Simmons to the brake room. He smiled as he pushed the door open while he finished off his doughnut. Evan brushed whatever crumbs he might have gained from his snack off while Simmons contemplated his words.

"So you're saying by giving Ellie the new project, in her mind I'm giving her an order to experiment on a sentient being?" Simmons reasoned, surprising Evan. Evan honestly thought most of the agents working for Sector 7 were idiots. Muscle that did nothing more than intimidate people into doing what they needed done. Simmons just proved that at least  _some_  of the agents weren't like that. At least, he proved that at least one of them possessed enough brain power to consider things from someone else's perspective.

"Pretty much. Ellie's a bit odd in that respect. Personally, I see all the aliens as nothing more than robot killing machines. Same as most of the base. Ellie refuses to believe that though." Evan walked towards one of the grey round tables stationed in the brake room. This table was covered with papers placed in neat stacks surrounding the only empty chair at the table. All the other chairs had bags and boxes sitting on them. Simmons glanced at the organized mess before watching as Evan claimed the empty seat that seemed to be in the center of the mess. Evan pulled a file folder off of one of the piles before glancing up at Simmons, who was staring at him.

"I thought interns had their own desks somewhere in the base?" Simmons asked with a raised eyebrow. Evan glanced at his organized mess of work and shrugged.

"I prefer working in the brake room. It's got food and drinks at the ready and I don't have to put up with people asking me to do simple jobs like getting them coffee. Most people avoid anyone with work in the brake room, meaning I can actually get my work done for once." Evan stated by way of explanation. Simmons seemed to consider this a moment before nodding his head.

"Makes sense. Hey, uh, kid. Any idea where Doctor Scott might be now. I think we've got a few things to talk about." Simmons asked. Evan glared at Simmons slightly for calling him kid and shook his head.

"Name's Evan. And I'm not sure where  _'Doctor Scott'_  is. She normally goes to see Mister Spock when she's angry, but seeing how she just came from seeing him, she's probably off trying to settle her emotions herself." Evan rolled his eyes at the use of Ellie's professional name. Ellie rarely used her professional name. It was something reserved for higher-ups and people she didn't like. He wasn't quite sure where agent Simmons fell right now. "If I were you, I'd wait a day or two to have your discussion. Let Ellie calm down a bit and get a hold of her emotions. If you go find her now I can only guess what her reaction would be, and it's not good."

Simmons seemed to consider Evans advice for a moment before nodding and turning to leave the work room. Muttering something about talking to her tomorrow. Evan watched Simmons leave the brake room and leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms over his chest as he thought over today's events. He wasn't sure why Simmons seemed to be taking an interest in Ellie, but he didn't like it.

He couldn't tell what the agent's intentions were, but Evan was someone who always assumed the worst of people. Something Ellie often reprimand him for. Ellie was a genius, but she could be incredibly dense about some things. Meaning every time someone like Simmons came along and started inserting themselves in her life, Doctor Freeman and himself were left to watch over Ellie from the sidelines and make sure they didn't cross any lines. Lucky for them, very few ever attempted to cross those lines.

…

Ellie sighed as she rubbed her face. She  _really_  hated it when she let her temper flare. Ellie was naturally energetic and often looked on the bright side of things. Her mother called her optimistic, her father said it was the mark of a good scientist. Always looking for ways to improve an experiment and finding the pros of failing. It took a lot to make Ellie angry, and she was almost always able to stop and calmly think about things from someone else's perspective before she let her anger get the best of her. The downside to this was when Ellie did get angry, she got  _angry_. An angry Ellie was something to be feared. It's why many of the scientist in her division avoided her now.

When Ellie had first joined Sector 7, she easily climbed the 'corporate ladder', getting promotion after promotion without pause. In reaction, many of her fellow scientists started to single her out. They'd insult her intelligence and claim that she only got as far as she did because of her father, or because of her looks. Ellie didn't mind this so much. It was easy for her to brush the angry words off and continue with her work. It wasn't until someone tried stealing one of her designs for an invention she was working on that she got angry. After that, everyone avoided her. Choosing to exchange whispers behind her back instead of throwing heated words in her face. Ellie didn't mind this change at all.

This time was different though. Ellie was almost positive she'd blown any chance at having a friendship with Simmons with her cold words. She just couldn't hold it back. Simmons had given her the  _one_  project she'd always dreaded getting. Now not only would she have to experiment on a sentient being, but this being is going to be conscious throughout the experiments. She could only hope that she would be able to find some sort of anesthetic for the little bots before she had to do it.

Ellie thought over her new project and gave a resigned sigh. It was for the best that she got the project really. She's probably the only one who'd take the time to try and  _find_  an anesthetic. She was the best chance that any of the bots they forced into creation had really. Ellie glanced down at the folder in her hand and stood from her spot on the floor. She glanced around, looking at the almost abandoned hallway she'd taken refuge in while she sorted out her emotions. She reached down and picked up the mechling laptop and started walking to the workstation she was given to use for the duration of the project. Her mind racing with ideas and theory's she'd need to test before she did  _anything_  resembling experimentation with the bots she'd be given to work with. She idly wondered if she could use this as an opportunity to show the others that the bots  _were_  in fact sentient.


End file.
